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Uber shifts gear on drivers’ rights after London ban

Rattled by losing its licence, the minicab service hints at concessions, as more than 600,000 petitioners rally behind it

Andrew Gilligan

September 24 2017, 12:01am, The Sunday Times

Young people are among Uber’s most prolific users with many relying on the company to get home after a night outRAOUL DIXON

Uber signalled last night that it was prepared to make concessions on safety and treating its drivers as employees as it battled to rescue its business in London.

The move came as more than 600,000 people signed an online petition against the decision by Transport for London, the regulator, to strip the service of its operating licence in the capital.

Speaking to The Sunday Times, Tom Elvidge, Uber’s general manager in London, appealed directly to TfL and the city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, saying: “We’d like to know what we can do . . . to sit down and work together to get this right.”

Elvidge’s words are a significant change of tone since Friday, when he said he was “astounded” at the decision to strip…

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